


Fake Dating for Apartments (Apartment for two)

by maddiebug



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Confusion, Fake/Pretend Relationship, M/M, Misunderstandings, Mutual Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-12
Updated: 2019-12-12
Packaged: 2021-02-25 21:14:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,925
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21592108
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maddiebug/pseuds/maddiebug
Summary: Marinette and Nathaniel are fake dating, Adrien is jealous and Marc just wants to clarify he is not a homewrecker.Inspired by Apartment for Two by Tete93
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Marc Anciel/Nathaniel Kurtzberg
Comments: 19
Kudos: 172





	Fake Dating for Apartments (Apartment for two)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Chocokuki93](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chocokuki93/gifts).
  * Translation into Русский available: [Квартира для двоих (от лица Марка)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23480779) by [SNL](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SNL/pseuds/SNL)
  * Inspired by [Apartment for two](https://archiveofourown.org/works/17629985) by [Chocokuki93](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chocokuki93/pseuds/Chocokuki93). 



> I want to thank Tete93 for allowing me to rewrite Apartment for two from Marc's perspective.  
> I got permission to do this about a month ago and finally finished it.  
> This should be fun.  
> Also, unlike the original story, this is a oneshot. I made all four chapters into one thing. 
> 
> I don't own miraculous Ladybug and much of the plot comes from Tete93

Marc and Nathaniel were friends. Best friends. They did everything together. They watched movies, played board games.

Most importantly, they were working on a comic book series together. Nathaniel illustrated, while Marc wrote the storyline. All in all, they were a pretty good team. They got through high school together, they could get through life together.

As friends.

There just happened to be the small problem that Marc had a crush on his best friend. Not that he was going to admit it or anything. He had no intention of making things awkward. So it was a secret, well kept. 

They were sitting in Marc's dorm, looking for apartments, separately. As friends.

Nathaniel looked at Marc. "If I don't find a place soon, I'm going to have to live on the streets. Or move back in with my parents."

Marc shook his head with what he hoped was sympathy. Nathaniel's parents were rather conservative and did not approve of their son. They wanted him to pursue a traditionally male field, instead of art. "I'm sure you can find a friend to share an apartment with."

"You really think so?" Nathaniel shrugged. "I don't know of anyone else who-"

"I am. I'm looking for apartments!" Marc blurted. Then he covered his mouth. There was no way that he could share an apartment with Nathaniel. If he accidentally revealed his crush, things could get awkward real quick. And while its easy to avoid a ex-friend, its harder to avoid a roommate. "But alone."

"That's a shame." Nathaniel frowned. "You would be a great roommate."

Marc started scrolling through Facebook, distracting himself from the blush creeping across his face. "Hey, look at this?"

Nathaniel took the laptop from Marc. "Marinette is looking for an apartment? I'd totally share an apartment with her."

"Didn't you have a crush on her-"

He waved it off. "That was way back in middle school. We're friends. I'll talk to her." He made a comment on the post, complaining about how hard it is to find apartments.

"Great." Marc tried to smile. "I'm sure she'd share an apartment with you."

"Yeah, maybe. Thanks for helping me out." 

"No problem." As Nathaniel left, Marc let out a sigh. On one hand, he missed an opportunity to share an apartment with his crush. On the other hand, it would prevent a lot of awkward moments.

...

Weeks later, Marc was still regretting that call.

Now, he was helping Nathaniel move into an apartment with Marinette. Adrien, Marinette's basically boyfriend was helping move her in, and Nathaniel's dad was there to carry in the heavy boxes.

Marc didn't really know why he was there. He was a friend.

This felt like a boyfriend job. Agreste was practically dating Marinette. But Marc, no matter how much he wanted to be, was not like that with Nathaniel. 

They were friends. Comic-book writing, video game playing, friends.

Nothing more.

Marc had almost had a panic attack in the hallway, when he heard the landlady call Marinette Nathaniel's boyfriend. Adrien looked equally pale, at the concept. Marc was about to run away, but as soon as they went inside, Nathaniel clarified the truth.

He wasn't actually dating Marinette at all. They were just pretending. For the landlady. 

Otherwise she wouldn't let them rent the apartment. She had some weird mindset and wouldn't let a boy and a girl share an apartment unless they were in a relationship. Stupid.

It made sense. Sharing an apartment saved money. It was the practical thing to do. Besides, Nathaniel and Marinette went to the same university, for art. Marc went to a nearby university for writing, but it was still a 10 minute drive away. It made more sense for Mari to share an apartment with Nathaniel than the other way around.

Marc didn't like it though. He had read enough fan fiction to know where fake dating usually lead. Somehow, he would have to date Nathaniel before Marinette did. 

Not that it was a competition or anything. She only had eyes for Adrien.

...

After hours of hard work the apartment was finally ready. They had set up everything, from Marinette's couch to Nathaniel's TV. It was finally looking like a place where people could live, instead of empty space.

Marinette, Nathaniel, Marc, Marinette's parent's and Nathaniel's dad had pizza for dinner, since all of them were too tired to cook, but wanted to celebrate moving in. Adrien made some excuse about a photo shoot and left before the pizza, which was sad, but everyone else had fun.

Marinette's parents, who were bakers, also brought a bunch of cookies, of which Marc are more than he would care to admit.

After dinner, the parents left, and Marc decided to spontaneously plan a movie night. They had the tv after all.

Nathaniel was totally on board. The only problem was, Marc didn't want it to be awkward. If it was just him and Nathaniel, it was almost like a date. They would be on the same couch. They had had movie nights before, and he didn't want this one to be different.

He froze. What if he and Nathaniel started cuddling? He invited Marinette to join, as a friend, but also a barrier.

"Are you sure you don't want to join movie night?" Asked Marc to Marinette "We have popcorns and skittles to feed a small army"

"Thanks Marc, but I'm tired enough to sleep for a week straight" Marinette yawned and went to sleep. 

"More for us then." Nathaniel smiled.

"Yeah, what movie do you want to watch."

"You can pick." 

Nathaniel ended up picking out Mulan. It was a classic disney movies and he knew all the songs, which Marc thought was really cute.

By the end if the movie however, Nathaniel had fallen asleep, leaning on Marc.

Marc didn't want to move, but he was also shaking. Falling asleep on someone was such a couple-like thing to do. He wasn't sure if Nathaniel was sending messages or just very tired.

Marc ate the rest of the popcorn and skittles, a very large amount, by himself. Then he felt a little sick. Was he taking advantage of his friend by letting him sleep on his shoulder? 

Should he wake up Nathaniel and let him sleep in a real bed?

In the end, Marc elected to move as little as possible and lie down on the couch.

Needless to say, Marc did not sleep well that night.

He had weird nightmares of Nathaniel and Marinette dating, but it was unrealistic.

When he woke up on the morning, his neck was sore and his shoulders felt stiff. He moved to stretch, before realizing that there was a person wrapped around him.

Nathaniel was wrapped around him, bear hug style. Somehow, they had been cuddling in their sleep.

Marc absolutely could not move. He laid there silently, for what felt like hours, until Nathaniel woke up on his own. They got off of the couch and got ready for the day together.

Marc borrowed some of Nathaniel's clothes and they shared breakfast, before Marc had to leave.

They learned that Nathaniel was really bad at making pancakes, and despite all the smack-talk, Marc wasn't any better.

They didn't talk about the sleep-cuddling, but based on the blushes present on both of their faces throughout the morning, it had affected both of them.

...

Initially, Marc had been jealous of Marinette sharing an apartment with Nathaniel. Everybody knew that Nate used to have a crush on Marinette. But he had moved on. 

He was just living with a friend, and that was totally cool with Marc.

For whatever reason, Marinette, Alix, everyone, seemed convinced that Nathaniel liked Marc too. They told Marc that he should definitely confess his crush, but there was no way Marc would do that.

It would definitely make things awkward. If Nathaniel wanted to make a move, Marc would gladly follow, but he wasn't going to take the first leap.

Marc was frustrated that he had missed the opportunity to live with his best friend/crush, but it was his own fault. 

He made up for that by spending as much time with Nathaniel as possible. They talked every day, even if he couldn't be there in person. 

After one busy day, Nathaniel video-called him to work on their comic. The cuddling was in the past, comic book was the present and future.

In Marc's story there was a new character that Nathaniel had just drawn for the first time. He wanted his drawing to be as close as possible as how Marc had picture the character in his head when writing the story. They wanted to finish the comic before classes started on Monday, but they got side tracked and they ended up talking until really late at night.

It was pretty productive at first, getting really good ideas for the Comic, but by the end of the conversation, it was totally random. Nathaniel was talking about an interesting documentary he had seen and Marc was just listening, enraptured. One thing he really liked about Nathaniel was his passion. When Nathaniel really got into something he got this look on his face... Marc could listen to him talk like that for hours.

At least he was not keeping Marinette awake by video-chatting in the living room, since she was pretty much awake anyway playing Mecha Strike V.

Marc felt a little bad about talking for so long, but she assured him that it was no problem. She managed to tune out their conversation. Eventually, Marc had to go to sleep, but even still, Nathaniel was with him, if only in dreams. 

...

Marc came over to work on the comic one day, while Marinette went out with Adrien. It was nice to spend some time alone with Nathaniel. Just the two of them, collaborating on the comic. 

Until They had to deal with awkward small talk. "How's it going at the apartment?"

"Pretty good. Marinette is a good friend, and she makes the best cookies."

"I know, man. I'd live with her just for the cookies."

Nathaniel chuckled. "Yeah and its really close to our school."

"Hey," Marc decided to change the topic, "did you head about that hiking competition that Kim and Alix were planning?"

"Yeah, but I don't know if I'm going."

"You aren't?"

"I don't know. I mean. I'll go if you do." Nathaniel shrugged. "I like nature, I could sketch the trees."

Marc didn't particular like the idea of camping, but he'd do anything for Nathaniel. "Why not? I think it'll be fun."

"It's next week, right?"

"I think so?"

"Cool, I guess ill see you then."

...

A week later, Marc was ready to go on the trip. Mostly. He was ready to spend time with his friends. He was not ready to sleep in the same tent as Nathaniel. He knew his friends. Marinette especially was a big shipper. He didn't want any awkward situations.

He had never gone camping before, so it was natural for him to want to go, right? Ugh! He needed to stop overthinking his own damn thoughts!

They had agreed to meet at the park in the morning. Marc was one of the first people to arrive. He day down under a tree and pulled out his notebook. If none of his friends were there get, he could at least take the time to brainstorm some ideas for the comics.

Time flew by, and when Marc looked up next, nearly half of the group was there. Juleka was sipping coffee under a tree and Rose was resting her head in her girlfriend's lap. Kim was there but Alix was yet to show up.

Adrien, who looked like he had never camped before in his life, showed up with a sleeping bag and perfect hair. That wasn't going to last.

"Hey Marc," said Adrien.

"Hey Adrien," he replied, before going back to his notebook. He just had a great concept and wanted to jot it down before he lost the idea. Marc wasn't trying to be rude, but he never was very social. Adrien sat against the same tree and sighed. 

It was all rather dramatic. Luckily, Nathaniel and Marinette weren't there to see the drama.

Suddenly Adrien sat up. "Marinette" speak of the devil.

"Good Morning Adrien!" She smiled at him. Marc didn't say anything, but he could see how weak Adrien looked, and he smirked a little. That boy really was helplessly in love. It was cute.

"Where's your boyfriend? Is Nathaniel not joining us?" Adrien asked hopefully. 

Marc froze. He had to have misheard that, right? Marinette and Nathaniel weren't-

"He is on his way here, he just…"

Marc felt his heart speed up. He looked at Marinette. "Did he just called Nathaniel your boyfriend?"

Marinette looked at Marc as if only then she was noticing he was there. She looked completely horrified for some reason.

"Are you two dating?" Pressed Marc.

"No!" Marinette replied immediately.

"No?" asked Adrien. He was about as confused as Marc.

"I mean yes…" Said Marinette. She was getting more and more uncomfortable each second.

"Yes?" Asked Marc, he felt heartbroken. He and Nathaniel had been getting closer, and he thought he had a chance. Turns out, it was all for nothing.

Adrien looked the same.

Marinette nodded.

Marc didn't miss the look on Marinette's face as he left. She looked positively miserable. She was so close to crying. 

But he needed a moment to himself. He needed to comprehend this new sort of heartbreak. 

He really had no chance with Nate.

Marc picked up his notebook and walked into the forest. He sat down, against some random tree, and started to cry.

Then he heard footsteps approaching. 

"Go away, Adrien, I don't need your sympathy." Marc could feel the tears rolling down his face.

There was a soft giggle. "If it helps, I'm not Adrien."

"That doesn't help." Marc let out a sob. "Why didn't he tell me?"

"Because, its not real." Marinette said calmly.

"It isn't?" Marc looked up.

"No."

He wiped the tears from his eyes. "Then, explain what just happened."

"I'm not dating Nathaniel!" 

Marc paused to consider her words. He stopped trying to run away, his arm was still caught in Marinette's surprisingly iron grip. He still didn't look at Marinette.

"Adrien just said Nathaniel is your boyfriend, and you just confirmed it." He said, avoiding Marinette's gaze. He spoke quietly, desperately. He didn't want what he said to be true.

Marc's voice sounded so small; Marinette wanted nothing more than hug him and drill into his head that she was not dating Nathaniel.

"It's all a lie." She explained.

"Why are you lying about dating Nathaniel?" He asked baffled.

It was a valid question. Why? Well, it just sort of happened. But she didn't tell Adrien the true because it was irrelevant. Adrien didn't love her, and it was better to let him believe she had moved on too. Or so she explained to Marc.

Nathaniel and Marc were a completely different story. They were best friends. They shared everything.

"It's a long story." She didn't elaborate further. "But the point is that there is nothing going on between Nathaniel and me, we are just friends and apartment-mates."

Marc finally looked at her."Really?"

"Really. Besides, Nathaniel is in love with someone else" Marinette said in a sing-song voice. Marc's face fell and Marinette rushed to avoid another misunderstanding. "That's you, by the way."

Nathaniel loved him? Marc was too stunned to reply, so Marinette used that as an opportunity to keep talking.

"You love him and he loves you. Do you know how rare that is?" There was a hint of jealousy on her voice. 

Marc just blinked and didn't react.

Marinette feared she had broken him. She decided to press further "If you two love each other, what's stopping you from being together. Go, get the man of your dreams!"

Marc had no words. She had made him speechless. If anything, he wanted to say that he was overdoing it. She didn't need to be this nice.

"As a matter of fact, I'll help you!"

"You would?" It was the first thing Marc said since Marinette told him Nathaniel loved him. His voice sounded unsure, but his heart was with it. 

"Of course. I'm a professional in the making of convoluted yet effective plans to get people together"

She had gotten all her ships together: Ivan and Mylène, Alya and Nino, Rose and Juleka and so on. Marc wasn't completely convinced that he and Nate was possible, but if it was, Marinette would be able to orchestrate it.

"Trust me," She said putting her arms around Marc's shoulder "I have seen more than ninety rom-coms. If you follow my lead by the end of this camping trip, you and Nathaniel will be dating".

Marc didn't seem convinced, but as long as he followed Marinette's instructions she could probably make this work.

He thought about it for a moment and frowned. "Why does Adrien think its real? I thought you guys were dating."

"We aren't." Marinette bit her cheek. "I love him, but he doesn't feel the same."

"Seriously, he has goo-goo eyes for you."

"No. He used to have a really big crush on me, but he's over it. He told me himself."

"He told you?" Maybe Marc wasn't good at reading situations.

"Yeah. He rejected me and then was there when the landlady talked about me and Nate dating and I just kinda rolled with it."

"But that's a lie? You hate liars."

"I know. But I didn't want to make things awkward between me and Adrien."

"I know the feeling." Marc sighed.

Marinette raised an eyebrow. "Nathaniel?"

Marc blushed. "Is it that obvious?"

"You guys would be so cute together!" She squealed.

"But he doesn't even like me like-"

"Marc, he's thinking about you all the time. He talks about you constantly."

"Yeah, as a best friend."

"No. He likes you. And you like him. Its perfect."

Marc felt a smile return to his face. "You really think I have a chance?"

"With Nate? Definitely." Marinette winked. "And I know I can help.

By the time they returned, Marc could barely wipe the smile off of his face. 

By the end of the trip, he would have a date with Nathaniel.

Maybe.

...

They walked back together, and Marc felt fine. Good actually. 

Then Nathaniel showed up. He and his bright red hair. 

Marinette smiled and gave Marc a little push. "Go talk to him."

"I don't know if I'm ready for this yet." He whispered back.

"You've got this."

Marc blushed, but stepped forwards to talk to Nathaniel.

Before he could, Nathaniel was intercepted by Alix. 

Marc stepped back and shook his head at Marinette. It probably wasn't going to work out. Then he shook his head.

That was anxiety talking. He took a deep breath and approached Nathaniel. No matter what, They were best friends. Maybe it would be awkward, but it was better than not knowing.

...

A few hours later the rest of the group had given up trying to keep up with Kim and Alix. They were just walking in the general direction of the finish line while Kim and Alix were far ahead of everyone else.

Marc definitely wouldn't have been able to keep up with them anyways. He was a writer, not an athlete. He could create worlds, but when he tried to run for more than an couple minutes, he would get an asthma attack. 

Marc didn't especially like hiking, but it was worth it because Nathaniel was there.

Nathaniel was talking animatedly with Marc about new ideas for the comic. It was great, but Marc didn't know how to confess his love. It definitely would be a strange way to change the subject. So he kept talking, about the comic.

Marinette kept sneaking glances and winking at then, and Marc did his best to ignore it. Nathaniel didn't even notice. 

What Marc didn't understand was the glares that Adrien kept giving them. Marc was just chatting with his friend. Marc shook it off, but it was still weird.

When they were halfway there, Mylène looked like she was about to pass out from exhaustion and Ivan offered to carry her the rest of the way.

Marinette looked giddy at the sight of Ivan carrying Mylène. She had a gigantic smile in her face and spark in her eyes.

"Isn't it romantic?" She asked Adrien.

"Yes, it is" He agreed.

Marinette turned around and winked at Marc. Winked. She wasn't even subtle. He felt his face turn red and he glared at her. This was not what he needed.

Half an hour later Marinette suddenly claimed:

"Marc, you look exhausted"

Marc sighed. He was definitely tired, but exhausted was a bit of an exaggeration.

"Don't you agree Nathaniel?" Asked Marinette. 

"Uh… yes?" Nathaniel sounded unsure and he looked confused.

Marc was trying to make eye contact with Marinette. He knew exactly where this was headed and motioned for her to cut it out.

"Why don't you carry him the rest of the way?" Suggested Marinette. 

"It's ok, I can walk" mumbled Marc. He wasn't that exhausted. Even if he dreamed of Nathaniel carrying him, it was overall an awkward situation.

"If you are really tired I can carry you" Offered Nathaniel.

It really wasn't reasonable. Marc was perfectly capable of walking. Also, Nathaniel was as tired as he was. If anything, he should be carrying Nathaniel. Nathaniel probably wasn't strong enough to carry him for an extended period of time.

Marinette jumped in before Marc could refuse again.

"It's all said. Nathaniel agrees that you look exhausted and he offered to carry you, so Marc don't be rude and jump to Nathaniel's back."

The way she said it sounded more like an order. Marc would gladly take orders from Nathaniel, but not Marinette. Did she really know what she was doing.

"I'll walk" repeated Marc blushing so much his face matched Nathaniel's hair. As much as he wanted to be in Nathaniel's arms, neither of them were ready for that.

Marinette face fell, and Nathaniel avoided eye contact for a moment. 

There was awkward silence for a bit before they resumed talking about the comic.

...

Kim won, which meant they were stuck with a gloating Kim and a cranky Alix for the rest of the trip.

Marc didn't mind, because the camping trip in General meant he could spend more time with Nathaniel.

Platonically, of course.

They were sitting around a campfire, cuddling, but it didn't mean anything. Marc and Nathaniel were wrapped in Nathaniel's blanket.

Telling scary stories was a lot of fun, even if Marinette and Adrien were really bad at it. 

Like really bad. Their stories weren't scary, just funny. But it didn't matter. It was still fun to spend time with friends.

Rose was singing some campfires songs with Juleka, and everyone was having a good time.

But it was getting late.

The sun had set, the stars were out, and Nathaniel couldn't stop yawning.

"Dude, if you're tired you should go to sleep." Marc told him.

"I'm fine." He yawned. "Really. Just sleepy. I don't want to miss out."

"You won't. You're tired. No one wants to deal with a grumpy Nathaniel in the morning." He teased.

"Hey!" Nathaniel frowned.

"I'm just teasing. If you miss out on smores, I will singlehandedly start a fire tomorrow morning for you, deal?"

"Deal." Nathaniel smiled. "But I'm taking this blanket."

"Fine."

Nathaniel took the blanket and went over to his tent. He was supposed to share it with Marc, after some complications with Marinette, but he was still at the campfire.

He crawled into his sleeping bag, and closed his eyes, hoping that Marc wouldn't be too loud when he finally decided to go to sleep.

...

A couple of minutes after Nathaniel left, Marc decided to go to sleep. He walked into his tent to see someone already asleep.

"Hey Marinette" The body on the floor shifted in response, but didn't say anything. Marc took it as an invitation to keep talking.

"I want to call off the plan. I really appreciate what you are trying to do, but I don't think it's going to work." Marc smiled as he thought about Nathaniel. 

'Marinette' said nothing.

"I have thought about it, and I'm not ready to let Nathaniel know about my feelings." He shrugged.

'She' still didn't move. She kept lying on the ground. Either 'Marinette' was a really good listener or completely asleep. Either way, it was better than talking to himself.

Or Nathaniel.

"I know you think he likes me, like romantically, but I'm pretty sure he only likes me as a friend and letting him know I love him romantically it's just going to make things awkward and ruin our friendship. So we should maybe just forgot all about our plan and…"

Marinette finally sat up. Only it wasn't Marinette. It only took Marc a second to connect the red hair and the face to Nathaniel, but when he did, he shrieked.

Marc's shriek was probably heard in the whole country. It was embarrassing.

"What are you doing here?" Asked Marc, pale as a ghost. He was almost shaking. He'd never intended for Nathaniel to hear a love confession. And certainly not like that. 

"I love you and I'm happy to hear you love me back," Said Nathaniel and then he put his lips in Marc's.

Marc was shocked at first. He felt frozen unsure what to do. Nathaniel started to pull away and apologize, but then Marc pulled him in for another kiss.

One kiss turned to two, and then three and then four.

If they had told him an hour ago he was going to end up making out with Nathaniel that night, he would not have believed it. They had a lot of stuff to talk about, but right now he just wanted to keep kissing him.

...

Marc didn't hear the tent unzip. He didn't see Kim until he yelled.

"It was about fucking time!" Said Kim happily, completely oblivious to Adrien's rage. Nathaniel and Marc jumped apart at the sudden intrusion. Both of their faces were red, blushing, trying to pretend that they hadn't just been all over each other, "Seeing you two pining for each other was getting boring!"

Without any previous warning, Adrien punched Nathaniel in the face.

...

Everything happened so fast Marc barely had a hard time keeping up with what was going on. First, he came to the tent, ready to tell Marinette he wanted to cancel their plan. Then it turned out it was Nathaniel he was sharing a tent with. Then he confessed (Marc haven't had time to freak out properly over it). Then suddenly he was making out with Nathaniel…

And then Adrien punched Nathaniel.

....

(This part is copy-pasted from tete93, because they wrote this one part from Marcs pov and I didn't want to rewrite it, but also I couldn't ignore it)

Marc was especially confused about that last part. Mainly because he didn't remember Adrien being there at all.

While Marc's brain was still restarting like Window Vista, Kim put himself between Adrien and Nathaniel.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Asked a bemused Kim.

"Do you have a problem with two guys kissing?" Asked Nathaniel. He sounded hurt, and Marc knew his pain was not only the physical one in his jaw.

"No" Adrien denied immediately, to Marc he sounded sincere "Don't make this about you being two guys, I don't have a problem with people of any gender kissing." Adrien sounded more pissed than he should have the right to, considering he was the one who just punched Nathaniel. "However, I DO have a problem with people who are dating Marinette kissing people that are not Marinette".

Oh.

Suddenly everything clicked in Marc's head, and he understood everything. Well, not everything, he was still confused about how he was so lucky that Nathaniel actually loved him back. But he understood why Adrien had punched Nathaniel.

Poor Adrien. He was so in love with Marinette he would actually punch her imaginary boyfriend for breaking her heart.

Marc would feel bad for Adrien if he wasn't pissed off at him for punching Nathaniel.

Kim looked even more confused than before. Nathaniel was just glaring at Adrien. Adrien still looked upset.

"Marinette and Nathaniel are not dating" Blurted Marc. "They were faking it".

He felt as if he was betraying Marinette's trust by saying this, but he was not going to let Nathaniel be punched again over some stupid lie.

"Hey losers, why are you making so much noise? It's way past midnight!" Alix sudden voice cut the tense air. It sounded like she was right outside their tent.

"Oh, there was a… spider" Replied Nathaniel. Marc may be a very bad liar but Nathaniel was even worse. But at least he sounded convincing enough that Alix replied:

"That much noise over a tiny spider? I can't believe I'm friend with cowards"

"I'm not a coward!" Replied Kim quickly.

"Kim? What are you doing in that tent?" Asked Alix confused.

"Adrien and Kim were helping us kill the spider" Replied Nathaniel. The lie was ok, the delivery could be improved.

"Did you killed it? Are you guys ok?"

"We didn't kill it, it ran away. About your second question, Adrien… accidentally hit me in the jaw with his elbow, so I'm not ok".

So Adrien punched him in the jaw and Nathaniel still lied to cover him. Marc didn't know if he was utterly exasperated with Nathaniel or more in love than before. Maybe both.

"You guys are a mess! Do you want me to take a look at that jaw? I took a First Aid course, remember?"

Nathaniel accepted Alix's offer and followed her outside of the tent.

"You know what, I give up trying to understand what's going on here. Good night!" Said Kim and left the tent. Leaving Marc alone with Adrien.

"What do you mean Marinette is not dating Nathaniel?"

"Exactly that. They are not dating. They were faking it the whole time." Explained Marc "I'm not sure if I should be telling you this, but I can't let you punch Nathaniel over some stupid made up relationship. Besides, I don't want people thinking I'm a home-wrecker or something".

Marc cringed when he used the word 'home-wrecker', but he couldn't come up with another word that fitted what he was trying to say.

Adrien looked at Marc with an odd expression on his face.

"Marc, I…" Adrien seemed at lost for a second "Look, I'm sure there must be a tactful way to say this. And a person with more tact than I will probably find it, but I think Nathaniel lied to you."

"Huh?" It was Marc's turn to be confused.

"He likes you, it's obvious. So he lied to you, and told you his relationship with Marinette was fake, so he could…"

"Nathaniel didn't tell me the relationship was fake" Replied Marc, he was usually a very patient man, but Adrien could test the patience of a saint. "Marinette did."

Now Adrien looked like his brain was restarting. Marc took that opportunity to keep talking.

"You know you are being an ass, right? First, you just punched Nathaniel over nothing, and now you are trying to convince me Nathaniel is some sort of two-timer. And Nathaniel still lied to Alix to not make you look bad"

At least, Adrien had the decency to look ashamed.

"I think I should apologize to Nathaniel" Adrien sounded sincere at least.

"I agree."

"I'll apologize tonight, but can we go back to the 'Marinette' topic for a second."

Sigh.

Adrien had tunnel vision when it came to Marinette. She was guilty of the same crime. Marc wondered how they were still not together.

"So, she told you her relationship with Nathaniel was fake?" Asked Adrien.

"She did, and she had no reason to lie. She actually was trying to get me together with Nathaniel. Girls don't usually try to get her boyfriend together with someone else".

Adrien considered his words for a second.

"Why did she lie to me then?" His voice sounded so small that suddenly Marc felt terrible for Adrien.

"I don't actually know" Replied Marc honestly "She never told me".

Adrien didn't seem to know what to say, so instead, he replied "Thanks for telling me" in the saddest voice Marc had ever heard from him.

Marc didn't know what to say. 'You are welcome' didn't seem appropriate in the context. Neither did a "good job champ" So he said nothing.

They heard Nathaniel coming back from Alix's tents.

Marc hoped Adrien hurried up with his apology and returned to his tent soon, so Nathaniel and he could go back at what they were doing before they were rudely interrupted.

....

(Okay I'm back)

Eventually, Nathaniel returned to the tent, with a band-aid on his nose. Adrien had been long gone for a while.

"Are you okay?" Marc gave him a hug. "I can't believe you took a punch for me."

"It hurts." Nathaniel chuckled. "It wasn't really for you..."

"Shh." Marc winked. "Ill kiss it better."

"I'd like that." 

Marc gave a soft kiss on the tip of his nose. "So, we should probably talk about this."

"I like you, you like me, its perfect."

"Can it really be that easy?"

"Well, we will have to hide it from my parents, but yeah. We're together all the time anyways. 

...

In the morning, Marc and Nathaniel woke up together. They held hands as they walked to the campfire.

Marc was half asleep, but he wanted to stay by his boyfriend's side forever. 

When he leaned over to kiss Nathaniel, he forgot that they had an audience. In that moment, it was him and his boyfriend. He kissed Hate on his cheek, where there was a slight bruise.

Their whole friend group cheered, Marinette loudest of all. It was honestly a little embarrassing, but exciting.

Apparently everyone had been rooting for them to get together. Even Kim and Alix were clapping for them.

Adrien gave them a smile and had the decency to look ashamed. He had punched Nathaniel after all.

Marc wasn't kidding when he said he would fight anyone for Nathaniel. 

Sure, Adrien was taller and stronger, but if he pulled a stunt like that again, Marc wouldn't hesitate to hit back.

He was a little petty.

...

After the trip, Marc expected everything to change between him and Nathaniel, but it didn't, really.

He was at Nathaniel's apartment most of the time anyways, they still worked on the comic. The difference was that their conversations became more flirtatious and they kissed.

There was a significant change in the amount of kissing between Marc and Nathaniel after they started dating.

Marc's favorite change was movie nights. Nathaniel and Marc had had a lot of movie nights that accidentally ended in cuddling, but now it was on purpose. Marc loved the feeling of being warm, snuggled up to his best friend and boyfriend.

Also, their comic began a romantic subplot, but Marc wasn't sure if that was due to his New relationship status or the fact that the plot just needed to go in a New direction.

Either way, life hadn't changed much, but the ways it had changed were wonderful.

The only think Marc didn't appreciate was all of the winking that Marinette did whenever she saw the two of them together.

It was nearly impossible to avoid, as she lived in Nathaniel's apartment, but she teased them constantly for being oblivious.

She was one to talk, the whole Adrien situation seemed like a different level of obviousness, but it wasn't Marc's place to bring it up.

...

One day, Marc and Nathaniel had planned to go out on a movie date. As they were walking out the apartment door, Marc had to bite his tongue as the landlady talked to Nathaniel. 

"I'll make sure that no men come along and try to steal your girl while you're away."

"I'm sure she can handle herself, but thanks." Nathaniel's face was red.

As soon as they were out of earshot, Marc burst into laughter.

"Shut up." Nathaniel elbowed him.

"I can't believe I ever thought you were straight."

"I never said I was a good actor." He protested. "That was one of the worst performances of my career."

"She never doubted it for a Second."

"I can't believe I have to lie about being straight to get an apartment."

"Honestly. Your life is like the plot to some weird fanfic."

"And you're the dashing man I fall in love with?"

"No." Marc smirked. "I was actually going to say we're the side characters."

"Oh? Do go on." Nathaniel opened the door to the parking garage. 

"It's about our favorite pair of oblivious idiots."

"I'm not your favorite idiot?"

"You're an artist, not an idiot."

"Touche. Anyways, tell you story, I'm intrigued."

"Give me a second. It's gotta be thrilling, compelling-"

"-I'm feeling thrilled and compelled right now."

"Shut up. I've got it. Remember when there used to be superheroes?"

"In like middle school? I guess. I kinda thought that was a weird fever dream."

"Okay conspiracy time."

"I'm ready."

"Marinette is Ladybug, and Adrien is Chat Noir. They've secretly been in love for years and are just realizing it now." Marc joked. "It's be the story of the century."

Nathaniel chuckled. "Yeah I'd definitely read that."

Before Marc could say another word, someone slapped him on the cheek, hard. 

As he pushed himself up, he heard Nathaniel say, "What the actual fuck Adrien?"

Said model looked between Nathaniel and Marc and didn't have anything to say for himself.

Marc stood up and punched the blonde in the face. "That's for Nathaniel." He slapped him. "And that was for me."

Adrien blinked, a little dazed. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize it was you guys."

"And you thought it was okay to randomly hit someone?" Marc teased. "Man, you've got problems."

"Once is an accident, twice is a coincidence. Any more and I might have to file a compilation with Marinette." Nathaniel joked.

"No, I just panicked." Adrien's hands were shaking. "I didn't realize that Marinette had told anyone."

"Told anyone what?" Nathaniel frowned.

"You know." Adrien made some gestures that didn't make any sense.

"We know?" Marc asked.

"The whole Ladybug thing."

Marc and Nathaniel shared a look of confusion. "What?"

"She told you that me and her used to be superheroes and-" 

"I'm sorry, I'm not following."

"You literally just said that I was Chat and she loved me." Adrien frowned. "Remember?"

"No?" Marc rubbed his head. "ohhh yeah. That was a joke."

"A joke?"

"A joke." Nathaniel repeated. "Because you used to be so flaky and you and Marinette are clearly meant to be, like Ladynoir."

"You mean, you didn't actually know that we were the heroes?"

"No?"

"I'm going to need some time to process this." Marc sat down on the ground.

"Can we pretend this conversation never happened?" Adrien asked sheepishly.

"Definitely not." Nathaniel frowned. "You're on thin ice, kitty-cat."

"Eww." Marc groaned. "Dont call him kitty, it sounds like flirting. I'm your boyfriend, not him."

"I should go. This was stupid. She probably doesn't want to see me."

"Why were you here anyways?"

"To see Marinette."

"Yeah, I figured, but why?"

"I want to let her know how I feel. I don't know if she feel the same way or not-"

"She does." Marc's interruption was promptly ignored.

"-but I really like her. And we have a lot of history. I recently found out that she used to like me, but I don't know if she does anymore." Adrien started to ramble.

"Dude." Nathaniel placed a hand on his shoulder. "Just go."

"Are you sure?"

"I mean, you're a danger to yourself and everyone around you, but yeah. She likes you too. I promise."

"I don't know if she even wants to talk to me."

"Just go."

As Adrien left, Marc laughed. "You didn't think to warn him about the Landlady?"

"Oh, I thought it would be funnier if he had to fight her."

"That would be really funny."

...

They decided it was better not to see a movie, and after getting some dinner returned to the apartment for dramatic effect.

Nathaniel and Marc walked in to find Marinette and Adrien kissing.

They shared a look, before Marc cleared his throat obnoxiously. He looked at his boyfriend and stage whispered, "I think you should punch him, Nathaniel."

Marinette and Adrien jumped apart, embarrassed.

She looked confused. "Why would you punch him?"

"Karma." Marc jokingly made a fist.

"What?"

"When me and Marc first kissed," Nathaniel explained, "He thought I was cheating on you, and punched him."

"Really?" Marinette looked at her boyfriend, unamused. "That's the first time I've heard that story."

"Then I can't wait to tell you about what happened in the parking lot today." Marc smirked.

Adrien's eyes were glaring at him. He kept making cutting motions, and pretending to zip his mouth shut. "Please don't."

"Shh." Marinette pushed her boyfriend aside. "I'm intrigued."

"Well-" 

Nathaniel cut his boyfriend off. "Honestly, it's not our story to tell. Talk to your boyfriend, Ladybug."

"Ladybug?" She spluttered. "Im not. Never. How did you?"

"Talk to your boyfriend."

...

**Author's Note:**

> Bonus from Tete93: A few weeks later Madame Bernard caught Marinette making out with Adrien in the corridor. She rushed to the apartment to tell Nathaniel only to catch him making out with Marc. She ended up convinced they were all part of a swinger club and evicted them. They now share an apartment (the four of them).  
> ....  
> Also hi yes I accidentally posted it early and the last couple of paragraphs were written in a panicked rush, After I realized what I did ahhhhh  
> Also just fixed some weird formatting stuffs.  
> I hope you like it.  
> Thanks so much!


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